Late in the third period of the Chicago Blackhawks’ 2-1 win over the Arizona Coyotes Thursday night, Hawks winger Joakim Nordstrom was assessed a two-minute minor penalty after hitting Coyotes defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson into the boards.
The hit was a scary looking one, with Ekman-Larsson laying on the ice for a brief period of time after the collision, but he did eventually get up and Coyotes head coach Dave Tippett is optimistic that the defenseman will be able to return to the lineup on Saturday for the team.
Here is the hit for those who didn’t see it:
According to Chris Kuc of the Chicago Tribune, the NHL hasn’t decided whether or not to discipline Nordstrom from the hit, but it frankly wouldn’t be a surprise if they did. The forward had plenty of time to pull up on the hit as the two went toward the boards, and he absolutely nailed Ekman-Larsson directly in the back, causing a dangerous collision with the barrier.
Perhaps adding to the NHL’s case against Nordstrom is the fact that the two teams were playing a very chippy game throughout the contest.
Andrew Shaw was involved in quite a few of the altercations, both delivering a hit from behind and getting him from behind into the boards during the game. It could be argued that Nordstrom got caught up in the emotions of the moment and let his judgment slip away from him, thereby endangering Ekman-Larsson in the process.
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For our money, Nordstrom should be suspended for at least two or three games for the infraction.
He is a first-time offender in the NHL’s eyes, but this type of hit is one that the league desperately needs to get rid of. It’s sometimes hard to tell whether a player turns into this hit or not along the boards, but in this case, it’s pretty cut and dried. Nordstrom should sit for this one.
